THE Pathway to Eternal Life: BEING The Last SERMON of that Eminent Divine Mr. T. WILLIAMS. B. D. lately deceased   depiction of Mr. T. Williams, B. D. giving a sermon to the congregation 
Licenced according to Order.  
Printed for A. Bettesworth at the Red Lion on London-Bridge   
Heb. chap. 9 ver. 27. 
And it is appointed unto Men once to die, bu● after this the Judgement.  
MY Beloved, feeling my own decay I have choose this serious and seasonable Text, which perhaps ma● be my last, to mind you of your latte● Ends, that you may reflect on the shortness of Life, and the uncertainty thereof, as to its continuance; and to prove it short and momentary, we find it in many respects compared to things of the least duration things that as it were only appear, and then suddenly fade away and vanish from our sight. Holy David says, Thou has● made my lise as it were a span long, and min● Age is nothing, in comparison of thee. In other Places it is compared to Smoke that vanisheth away; to the Flower that fadeth; and to Grass that is cut down, and withereth; and St. James, who spoke by an excellent Spirit, says, Our Life is but a vapour; and yet this short momentary Life, is, by the Creator of all things in h●● Eternal Wisdom, given us as a Talon to improve on this side the Grave; that in doing well we may purchase Crowns o● Glory and Immortality, and a Life that never shall have end, in which we sha●● enjoy pleasures, pure, and unmixed with ●or●ows; Joys that fade not away, but abide ●or ever; though here we are Strangers ●nd Pilgrims, and have no tarrying City, out travel through a Wilderness and Vale of Tears; yet beyond the Grave, when Time shall be with us no more, we shall have fixed and durable Habitations, Mansions not made with hands, in the highest Heavens, shining with Honour and sparking Glory, which Christ, who laid down his precious Life, and shed his rich Redeeming Blood for mankind, is gone before to prepare for all those that love his Name, and obey his Gospel.  
That Death is the certain Lot of all Mankind, daily Experience shows us, by the dropping off of our Friends and nearest Relations, one where or other, unto the Grave, adding a new Cause of Sorrow to mournat their Funeral, and spread doleful Cyprus over their Hearses, till it comes to our own ●urns, when matured by time to follow ●hem, lie down within the Chambers of Dust, there to remain till the Morning of the Resurrection, when the loud Archangels Trumpet shall rouse us from our long silent Re●o●e, to meet the Lord of Glory coming in the Clouds of Heaven to judge us, and accordingly pronounce the Sentence of Reward or Punishments, as we have done Good or Evil in the Flesh.  
Death is entailed on us for the Sin and Disobedience of our first Parents, and there is no Pledge nor Reprieve from it, nor do we know any certain limit of time when it will snatch us hence. The tender Blossoms as often fall, as the ripe mellowed Fruit; the Lamb as soon as the aged Sheep, goes to the Slaughter, and however it falls out, we must at one time or other all pass through the Valley of the Shadow of Death.  
Now some who have heard of the unspeakable Joys of Heaven, may say I am desirous to departed, and be with Christ; but yet the grim King of Terrors, standing between, startles and amazes them into this farther Consideration, how to come to the blessed Shore, where there is so great a Gulf between them and it, as to be lead Captive unto his gloomy Chambers, and in their fright, say with the Psalmist, My Heart is sore pained within me, and the pains ●f Death are fallen upon me; fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror, Psal. 〈…〉 4,5. I see the Shore where I willingly would be out of the Troubles, Sorrows, Cares, and Vexations of this tempestuous World which is at enmity with me; but Oh! here is a great Gulf between me and that ●lessed Elysium; I must be tossed on a boisterous Sea, and be wrecked by dreadful Waves and Tempests: Is there no way to Canaan, but through the desolate Wilderness? Must I go through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, to the Land that flows with Milk and Honey; the new and heavenly Jerusalem, which is above? These are things contrary to Flesh and Blood, and such as will make the stoutest Courage faint and tremble.  
Yet certain it is, say what they will, the way to true Life lies through the Gates of Death; it is irrevocably appointed unto Man once to die; and therefore, to antidote ourselves against the Fears and Horrors of Death, and the Confusion and Perplexity of a Dying State, is so to live always, as if we were knocking at the Gates of the Grave; and then the Grave shall never have power to prevail against us to our hurt; always considering, when we come to die, it is the determinate Order and Appointment of God, in whom we live, and move, and have our Being; he places our Souls in these earthly Tabernacles of Clay and we are only here Tenants at Will, liable to be dispossesed at Pleasure; it is appointed for all Men once to die, and that it is an irrevocable Decree of Heaven, that we must all walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, Why should we, like Men without Hope, fear any Evil? For the Lord is with the Righteous, and will guide them safely through the Terrors and Affrightments that they are naturally attended with: Then shall they rest from their Labours, and their Works shall follow them, to crown them with everlasting Joys, and a peaceable Serenity to all Eternity; then shall they look back on the Dangers they have passed. with Joy, and sing Praises and Hallelujahs to him that liveth for ever and ever.  
Let us not then look upon Death, as some strange unexpected Accident befell us; for may we not hereupon say with the Apostle St. Paul, That no man should be moved with th●se Afflictions; for yourselves know that we are appointed hereunto, 1 Thes. 3.3.  
It is an undoubted Mitigation of any Sorrow or Affliction, to know that God hath appointed it as an unavoidable Lot and Portion of all Man Living; so that on this Account we may say with the Psalmist, I ●ill fear no Evil, for thou art with me; for ●ertain it is, all the Evil in Death proceeds only from an evil Life: For a good Life ●akes away the Sting of Death, and makes his cold Embraces easy and tolerable; but 〈◊〉 bad Life gives him double Arms against us; Power over us here and hereafter, in a more terrible and fearful second Death, a Death to all Eternity, though living to bear the unspeakable Terrors of it; excluded for ever from all that is God, except his Anger and fiery Indignation; the Consideration of which made the Prophet cry out, Who can dwell with the everlasting Burn? and such must do it, who taste of the second Death, by falling into God's Displeasure by sinning, and heaping up wrath against the Day of Wrath; for our God, when he is angry, is a consuming Fire; nay, if his Anger be but a little kindled in his Breast, blessed are all they that trust in him; and if Sin makes the first Death so uneasy, it must necessarily render the second infinitely more intolerable.  
For indeed, the Sting of Death is Sin, and no Terror is in this State like that which doth redound to us from a guilty Conscience, which has got us under hold, and will chastise us; for though in our Health an● Jollitry we may pass it over lightly, yet o● our Sick-Beds, when Death stairs us ghastly in the Face, than the pains of Hell, as i● were, gets hold on us, we are in Troubl● and Heaviness, our Souls are as restless and uneasy as our Bodies; then, as the Prophet Isaiah says, We are like a troubled Sea, that cannot rest, whose waters cast up dirt and mire; and again, there is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked; for in such a State, when we come to die, the greatest Melancholy that shall then seize our Spirits, will be from the heavy Load and Burden of our Sins, that will be ready to oppress and sink our Souls.  
Then we shall find that Threatening verified in us, Psal. 50.21. I will reprove th●e, and set them in order before thine Eyes; and what Grief or Anguish can be comparable to that which redounds from this, when we are going hence? and when God, by visiting Sickness, as his Messenger, gives us warning to remove, Must it not concern and afflict us, beyond all Thought and Expression, to consider, in such a Case, what Danger our Sins have brought us to? They hid God's Face and Mercy from us, and in our greatest need of Comfort and Support, threaten us with utter Ruin and Destruction, and nothing now can be so sharp and intolerable, as the Thoughts of a displeased and angry God; and well may that be so to us, which was the greatest of our Saviour's Troubles; for at his Dying Hour, the Gild of all our Sins, pressing heavy upon his Soul, occasioned a bitter Agony, and that bitter Exclamation, viz. My God My God Why hast thou forsaken me? And most certainly, at the Dying Hour of all wicked Men and Women, the Sense of Gild will be the bitterest Potion, and the very Dregs of the Cup of trembling; their Hearts will faint, and their Souls will sink within them; it will be with them, as with Felix, when Bawl preached of Judgement to come; his Gild through the fear of it, made him tremble. They shall shake and fear, and cry mightily, and have on them such passionate Concernment as is inexpressible, from the dismal Apprehensions of the Divine Wrath and Indignation which their Sins have kindled and provoked against them, even to cry out with Cain, Their Punishment is greater than they can bear.  
Then whilst it is to day, Let us hear God's Voice, Calling to us to repent; Let us be up and doing his Will, lest the night of Death suddenly overtake us, in which no Man can work; for in the Grave there is no Repentance; as the Tree falls, so it lies; as Death leaves us, so will Judgement find us: Which is the next and last thing pursuing my Text I propose to treat on, viz.  
After this, the Judgement: We have a sure word for it, that after Death there is a Judgement.  
I am, saith the Lord, the Resurrection and the Life, he that believeth in me, though he were d●ad, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me, shall never die, St. John 11.25, 26. And Holy Job says, I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the Earth; And though after my skin, worms destroy this body, yet in my fl●sh shall I see God; Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another, Job 19.25, 26, 27.  
This plainly proves, that after Death the Soul shall descend and unite again with the Body, and both at the sound of the last Trump shall arise together, to receive their Rewards for the works done in the Flesh, whether it be Good, or whether it be Evil; for St. Paul says, 1 Cor. 15.52, 53. The trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed; for this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.  
The Earth, Sea, and Hell shall be compelled to give up the Dead that are in them, ●nd they shall be gathered from the Four Winds under Heaven, and be caught up to meet the Lord, Coming in the Air, accompanied with Ten Thousand Angels, to ●udge the Inhabitants of the Earth, at whose Presence its Foundations shall tremble, and ●t shall be dissolved; the Elements shall melt with fervent heat; the Stars shall fall; ●he Sun be darkened, the Moon turned into Blood; and the Heavens rolled up togegether like a scroll, in that great and terrible Day, when the Book shall be opened, wherein all our Actions shall be written, ●nd we shall be judged out of it, according ●o the things that are written therein; then ●appy is it for him who has well improved ●is Talon in this Life, he shall enter into ●he Joy of his Lord with Praises, and clad ●n shining Robes, crowned with Glory and Honour, in everlasting Life, where all Tears ●hall be wiped away from his Eyes, and he ●h●ll see the abundant Recompense of his ●●bour in his Spiritual Warfare; for he ●●at is faithful has promised it.  
But those that have been slothful and unprofitable Servants, shall call in vain to the Rocks and Mountains to fall upon them to hid them from the Face of the Lamb, and from the Face of him that sitteth on the Throne, but not hiding Place shall shield them from his Wrath and fiery Indignation, which shall pursue them to Eternal Torments, upon pronouncing, Go ye cursed into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels, where shall be woes and lamentations, anguish and gnashing of teeth where the worm never dieth, and the fire i● not quenched.  
From which Torments God of his infinite Mercy deliver us all, by giving us Hearts for a timely Repentance, before we go hence; for the sake of his wellbeloved Son Jesus Christ, who shed his precious Blood, that redeemed us from Sin and eternal Death, that we might live and reign with him evermore. Amen.  

His last Speech, or pious Exhortations to his Parishioners on his Deathbed, Exhorting them to a Godly Life.  
AT the Close of this Sermon, a faintness seized this good Divine, and as he had predicted, it proved his last, and served as a Comfortable Mourning-Dress for his Funeral; for being led home, he found his Illness increase, and in a Day or two, perceiving his Dissolution drew nigh, he sent for the chief of his Parishioners, who standing about his Bed, he made the following Speech, or Farewell Exhortation to them.  
My Beloved Parishioners, Finding by my Age, and more by a sensible decay of Nature, I have not long to stay with you, but must follow, as I hope, those blessed Souls that are gone to the Bosom of Bliss before me. In the first place, to do all the Good I can whilst I live, I commend the perusal of my Last Sermon to you, to which end I have given order it shall be printed for the general Benefit; and particularly of you that have heard it delivered from my Mouth; and being so suitable to the Occasion, I may well term it my Funeral Sermon. In the next place, I desire you earnestly to repent you of your Sins, and bring up your Children in the fear of the Lord. In the third place, Let your dying Pastor prevail with you to live in Love and Unity with one another, and be charitable to the Poor, comfort the Afflicted, and so you will bring down a Blessing on yourselves, and your Posterity. Fourthly, Put not Death far away from your Thoughts as a thing at a distance, but strive to be always prepared for it, for we know not th● Hour of its Coming; seeing when w● think it farthest off, it often is nearest a hand, and too sadly surprises many, like a Thief in the Night. And now what else remains, I hope a good Man succeeding me in this Cure, will not fail to instruct everyone of you, as occasion shall require.  
And now the Blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and Holy Spirit, Three Persons, and One God, be with you, and remain with you, to your Lives ends, Amen.  
This he expressed so affectionately, as made them weep over so good a dying Man. After these Exhortations he proceeded to repeat the following Prayer.   

His Prayer.  
O Eternal God Father of Spirits, Everlasting King of Glory, look down with the Eyes of thy infinite Goodness and Mercy, to me thy poor and unworthy Servant, lying on my Bed of Sickness, preparing to come unto thee; strengthen me against the Faars and Terrors of Death, and give me a steadfast Faith and Hope to overcome all the subtle Temptations of Satan, that in this last Encounter he suggests to stagger my Confidence in ●hee. O let me remain sure grounded, and suffer me to place it not where else but in thee; ●hat living I may be thine, or dying I may be ●hine; and ever praise and magnify thy Holy Name, for all thy Mercies; through the Me●its and Mediation of Jesus Christ, my ever ●lessed Saviour and Redeemer. Amen.  
After this, fetching some Sighs, with ●●fted up hands, he put up the following ejaculations.   

His last pious Ejaculations.  
O Lord! thou hast been my Refuge from my Youth, and under thy everlasting Arm is my Covering and my Salvation. As the Hart panteth after the Water-brook, 〈◊〉 my Soul thirsteth for the Living God.  
I am in a strait between two, but my ●esire is to be dissolved and be with Christ.  
O how amiable are thy Tabernacles; ●●ou Lord of Hosts! and how blessed are ●●l they that dwell therein.  
Why art thou so heavy, O my Soul! ●●d why art thou so disquieted within me! 〈◊〉 put thy Trust in God, and he shall deliver ●●ee from the Power of the Enemy.  
Death is swallowed up in Victory. O ●eath! Where is thy Sting? O Grave! ●here is thy Victory? Thanks be to God, who giveth me the Victory, through ou● Lord Jesus Christ.  
I have fought the Fight, I have finishe● my Course, I have kept the Faith, and from this Day is laid up for me a Crown of Glory▪  
These last words he brought forth with a pleasing smile, and then fainting, he said Lord Jesus into thy hands I commend my Spirit, and so sweetly died; at the Departure of whose Soul, there was such a harmonious Sound heard, as made those present fall on their Knees and give Praise 〈◊〉 God for all his Mercies.  
As for the Sermon before set down, th● Parishioners were earnest to have it preached from his Notes at his Funeral, before it came abroad, and prevailed with his Relations accordingly, the Auditors being very numerous: and thus passed this painful Pious Divine, from this troublesome Life, to an endless one in Glory,    
FINIS.  

Christian Reader,  
If that these weighty Considerations should be reckoned not worth laying out one Penny, be pleased to read it Gratis, keep it clean, and return it in two Hours.